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Superintendent's Report on Audit Results, District Updates

Borg Report October 25, 2024

I hope all of our students, staff and families had a relaxing and rejuvenating MEA Break. As we move forward through the school year, I want to take a moment to provide you with an important update on several key initiatives within our district. 

As always, please feel free to contact me directly if you have questions about these or other topics. Thank you for your continued support of our schools and students.

Westonka Receives ‘Clean’ Audit Report

I am pleased to report that auditors at the Oct. 14, 2024 Westonka School Board meeting gave the district an unqualified or "clean" opinion—the best opinion a district can receive. The auditors reported that the district's revenues and expenses came in better than projected for 2023-24.

While a number of school districts around us are facing reductions, we attribute Westonka’s strong financial position to our community's support of our schools, the stability we've seen in enrollment, and our disciplined approach to expenditures to ensure we can meet our priorities: advancing student learning and opportunities. In the coming months, you will notice a focus on how we can challenge our district budget to put us in the best possible position to prevent large reductions in the future. 

Andy Grice, auditor representing Bergen KDV, complimented the care and diligence of Westonka’s business services team. “I did want to recognize the district and how accurately the projections came in,” Grice said at the October meeting. Looking at the General Fund final budget compared to actual amounts, revenues came in within 0.1% and the expenditure variance was just 1%, Grice explained.

I want to thank Finance Director Kathy Miller and her team for their careful work and the staff at large for the discipline shown working within our budget. For detailed information on the district’s financial position, view the audited financial statement on the district website for the year ended June 30, 2024

Bond Construction, Design Work Continue

Construction and design work continues on districtwide bond projects. We are grateful for the community’s support of the 2023 bond referendum, which will allow us to improve safety and security at all schools; address significant deferred maintenance needs of our 50- to 70-year-old buildings; and redesign the high school to enhance the learning environment and improve functionality, safety and pride. 

Lockdown training

On the October 16 professional day, Westonka administrators received hands-on training on the new security systems now in place at Hilltop and Shirley Hills primary schools and the Westonka Early Learning Center, which include centralized lockdown capacity, alarms and strobes. At the push of a button, school staff can now secure security doors and hallways and limit access by an intruder. Schools will also be able to isolate specific areas within the building, providing public access only where it’s needed. 

The relocation of the main office at Grandview Middle School to create a secured entrance and the related security improvements are being targeted for summer 2025 to allow sufficient time for design, bidding and securing of materials. Bid opening for the middle school project is scheduled for December 2024.

High school security upgrades will be completed as part of the redesign in 2025 and 2026. I want to extend my heartfelt thanks to the students, staff, parents, and community members who have actively participated in the design process for the high school building. With the bid opening for this transformative project scheduled for November 2024 and construction kicking off in April 2025, we can look forward to a completely redesigned environment that will significantly enhance student learning, opportunities, safety and pride. This is an exciting step forward for the entire Westonka community!

tennis court construction site

Also of note, concrete has been poured and asphalt is down on the new high school tennis courts, and fencing will be installed at the end of November. The courts will receive their final coating next spring when temperatures allow, and they will be in use for the spring tennis season. Find construction photos on Kraus Anderson’s project update page.

Westonka School Board to review school names

 

Watch the branding and school naming presentation from October 14, 2024 school board meeting (1:02:22)

As I presented at the October school board meeting, the district branding review completed earlier this year revealed significant inconsistencies in how individuals inside and outside our district refer to our schools. Mound, Mound Westonka, and Westonka are used interchangeably for both our high school and district. In the news media, we have been referred to as everything from Mounds/Westonka to Mound-WestTonka to West Mound Minnetonka. When people struggle to accurately remember our name, it signals that our brand identity is not as strong or clear as it should be.

The Westonka School Board plans to take action on school names at the November 18, 2024 board meeting. The board will vote on a proposal to adopt Westonka Middle School and Westonka High School as the middle and high school names starting in the 2025-26 school year, while preserving our primary school names. The timing of this vote aligns with bidding for the high school and middle school construction projects, presenting the opportunity to implement name changes at minimal additional cost should the board decide to do so.

The name Westonka is unique and has long been embraced by both for-profit and nonprofit organizations to represent the cities along Lake Minnetonka’s western shore. It also equally represents the eight lake communities within our school district boundaries. The proposed name changes will bring consistency and a sense of unity across our schools and community.

Our district’s success today is built on the achievements and contributions of countless individuals who have walked the halls of our schools. As we engage in discussions about potential name changes, our goal remains: to proudly represent our entire community while honoring the rich history that defines us. Together, we continue to build on the legacy that the graduates of Mound High School and Mound Westonka High School created.

Please feel free to reach out directly to me with any questions or comments.

Sincerely,

Kevin Borg, Superintendent
borgk@westonka.k12.mn.us
(952) 491-8001